Topic: WorldNetDaily
Hanne Nabintu Herland complained in her April 26 WorldNetDaily column:
The forced politicization of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine may easily backfire. As the Ukrainian government is now engaged in a militant, atheistic, Soviet Union-type of manhunt and persecution against traditional Orthodox Christians, despite their pledged loyalty to Ukraine, this may be a mistake that will impact the Russia-Ukraine war in unexpected ways. What happens domestically when you begin attacking your own history? "The Ukrainian authorities are sadly ignorant of the spiritual laws that govern the universe. Instead, they spit upon the Church and the saints," says Metropolitan Luke of Zaporozhye. Almost half of the Ukrainian population adhere to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
[...]
The world-famous Monastery of the Caves, the Holy Dormition Kiev Caves Lavra, dates back to the 11th century. It is the holiest site in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and now at the center of attention, as the current government has decided to expel the church from this site, pledging to take its hundreds of years old holy relics and turning these over to museums. The thousand-year-old monastery is to be a place for arts, crafts and military rehab.
Herland is being quite vague about what is happening here. At no point did she note that, as we've documented, the Ukranian Orthodox Church continues to have ties to the Russian Orthodox Church, which is headed by a stauch ally, Patriarch Kirill. A breakaway sect, the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, has formed independent of Moscow -- the existence of which Herland doesn't mention at all (also, Russia refuses to recognize the church). The Ukranian government took over the monastery because the UOC continues to remain affiliated with Moscow despite pledges to the contrary.
Still, Herland insisted on whining: "When the Western-affiliated government follows atheistic Soviet tactics of harassment and persecution of the Ukrainian Church, they ignore the very greatness of their own history that made Ukraine such a center for spirituality in the East." Again, she falsely portrayed the UOC as be persecuted for their religion when, in fact, they are facing consequences for continued links to Russia at a time when Russia is waging war on Ukraine.
That's just rank dishonesty -- but then, we're used to that from Herland.
